Investigation launched into Namur plane crash

Police have started the identification process of the 11 victims of Saturday’s plane crash, following one of the worst aircraft disasters in Belgium in recent years. Ten skydivers and the pilot lost their lives when the plane spiraled to the ground, shortly after taking off from Temploux airport, near Namur. King Philippe, prime minister Elio Di Rupo and interior minister Joelle Milquet visited the crash site before meeting family and friends of the victims in the hours after the accident. All 11 victims, ten men and one woman, were Belgian, largely from the Namur and Gembloux area. Their loss has shocked the country’s small, tight-knit skydiving community. Witnesses told local media they heard a large boom and saw the wing fall off the aircraft before it nosedived into a field and burst into flames. The Swiss-built Porter PC-6 Pilatus, a short take-off and landing aircraft, is frequently used by parachute clubs. The aircraft that crashed on Saturday had already been involved in an accident in Belgium in 2000. Temploux’s previous Pilatus crashed on take-off in 2002, causing the death of an American skydiver. Out of respect for the victims, the parachute club has suspended all jumps until the end of the year. The investigation into the cause of the accident is expected to last at least six months.